1 year (2015). Re-signed by Colorado as a free agent 11/10/14 (minor-league contract).

1 year (2014). Signed by Cincinnati as a free agent 5/18/14 (minor-league contract). Acquired by Colorado in trade from Cincinnati 7/2/14. Contract selected by Colorado 7/4/14. DFA by Colorado 7/21/14. Sent outright to Triple-A 7/23/14. Refused assignment by Colorado 10/4/14.

1 year (2013). Signed by Baltimore as a free agent 2/15/13 (minor-league contract). Contract selected by Baltimore 5/18/13. Designated for optional assignment by Baltimore 6/30/13. DFA by Baltimore 7/12/13. Elected free agency 7/18/13. Signed by Detroit as a free agent 7/24/13 (minor-league contract).

BP Chats

Hanson has the more promising baseline, but I fear that there is some underlying structural damage that will create an uphill battle (he has lost 3 mph from his FB in two years). I was on board with the mechanical changes that he was going to make out of spring training, but he seemed to scrap the idea early in the season and reverted back to his old delivery. I prefer Hanson in a vacuum, but Jurrjens' approach is less dependent on the heat, and his injuries are lower-body in nature, so I would give him the better odds of regaining his previous level of effectiveness (with the caveat that he was never as good as his 2011 ERA suggested).

Ive recently acquired joey votto in a ss league and been offered jj and zimmermann. what are your thoughts for jj in the second half.(j from some yankee town)

Depends on who J.J. is. If it's Putz, I think he'll improve a little but not enough to be interesting. If it's Hardy, he also is capable of better things. If it's Josh Johnson, same thing, but with perpetual injury risk. Who else is there? J.J. Hoover. Jon Jay. Jair Jurrjens. John Jaso. Jim Johnson. I'm not getting warm and fuzzy about any of these guys. So I guess it doesn't depend on who J.J. is. Good chance of small improvement, but nothing exciting. I wouldn't trade Votto for Zimmermann and anyone with the initials J.J. (Geoff Young)

When will the Braves tweak their organizational philosophy. They are always overflowing with young arms, but they refuse to trade any of them for bats, which they usually lack. Today comes word that Arodys Vizcaino might need Tommy John. They missed the boat again. (Kyran from Malone, NY)

To be fair, it appears Atlanta did try to trade Jair Jurrjens this offseason. (R.J. Anderson)

It's so hard to predict what young pitchers will do from start-to-start let alone year-to-year. All six of those pitchers you mentioned are exciting young options and we are glad they are in our organization. You didn't mention Jair Jurrjens, who some people feel was the best pitcher in the first half of the 2011 season. (John Coppolella)

There were some who thought his 2008 season would be his best; obviously, he chose to disagree. He suffers from some of the biases against "short" right-handers, and he isn't throwing any harder. Still, he outperformed Lowe (and Kawakami). It seems crazy that even before this season, two of his top comps were Greg Maddux and Dave Stieb, two of the best "short" right-handers of the past generation. It also suggests how extraordinary Jurrjens already is, which is where all the doubt comes from. Could he really be that good? I don't think we can say yes or no with anything like the same sort of authority as we can with more typical players. I'd take my chances with him, certainly. (Christina Kahrl)

First of all, he should have diminished velocity. You don't throw as hard making 3x starts as you do throwing 80 IP out of the pen. Secondly, I hate how they handled him this year, and while I can respect the effort to try something different, it failed, and it really seemed to mess with him. I give him something of a pass for the last two months.

There's such an expectations issue, and we saw that with Buchholz as well. Young pitchers don't always have the Jair Jurrjens launch. Long answer short, if the Yankees take the training wheels off Chamberlain, he'll give them 190-200 IP and an ERA around 3.50. (Joe Sheehan)

What do the Braves do with their rotation in the off season? If the Braves pick up Hudson's $12 million option the Braves have 6 quality starting pitchers and pending free agents at closer #1, closer #1a, first base and possibly 3rd base.(Frug from UIUC)

Well, the Braves are a very cost-conscious team during this era of corporate ownership, so I wouldn't put it past them to NOT pick up Hudson's options given their other needs. That said, I think it's quite possible they would pick it up and explore the trade market for Javy Vazquez or Jair Jurrjens, both of whom might be at their all-time peaks in value. It's a nice problem to have. (Jay Jaffe)

For overall career value, this point on, who would you rather have Edinson Volquez or a pitching prospect ranked around 80th on Goldstein's top 100 list next year? Neither will likely pitch next year, both have some risk of development, both have some upside. I guess the question boils down to how much you believe that Edinson can regain his status from the injury.
I am in a strat league, I could either keep Volquez or cut him and draft someone in the 80th range on Goldstein's next list.(LindInMoskva from DC)

Volquez will miss 2010, but most pitchers come back from TJ to previous level. That's a major league pitcher with some upside. He'll be 28. Looking back to Goldstein's 2008 list (not 2009), guys at that level are Deolis Guerra, Radhames Liz, Max Scherzer, Jair Jurrjens, Aaron Poreda, and Greg Reynolds. Even with a year of development, we're looking at two guys who have established themselves at the MLB level, plus Poreda who's an upside guy. I'd probably take Poreda and Jurrjens over Volquez right now, Scherzer's a toss up, but then you have to figure out the "bust risk." Which of those guys would I have picked LAST year and am I confident that I can pick correctly? Kevin's an expert and had Poreda under Liz ... I think that bust risk is huge, so I'd almost always go with the guy I know can pitch. (Will Carroll)

Did you just forgot about Jair Jurrjens when you talked about the Braves rotation for 2010 or you anticipating a trade? Related, do you think the Braves will pick up Hudson's option? They already have to deal with fact that their two closers, set up man and first baseman are all eligible for free agency.(Frug from UIUC)

I love Jurrjens, but in that rotation, he's the #5 even though he'd be a #3 in most other rotations. I just don't see him repeating the performance this season, and I own him in a strat league. (Eric Seidman)

I have trouble when people talk about #3 or #4 starters. What exactly does that mean, practically speaking? Not the rotation spot, exactly, but the abstract label as applied to an average guy with ups and downs like everybody else? Is there really that much difference between slots 1 and 2, 2 and 3, 3 and 4, and so on?(Christopher from Nashville)

When I use the terms it's more to describe a guy who isn't going to be a perennial Cy Young Award contender or all star, but who does more than provide below average production in a lot of innings (see: Suppan, Garland). So someone like Jair Jurrjens I would say I can see him being a #3, or middle of the rotation starter. I'm not saying his numbers fit predetermined criteria for being slotted in a certain spot, but rather that he'll be middle of the pack, not an ace, not filler. (Eric Seidman)

Jair Jurrjens has been so-so recently. Should I be unloading him?(qbroda from Regina)

Nope. About the only thing he's done wrong his last few starts is lose, which isn't entirely on him. I like his component stats a lot still, and he's still doing better than in April. You kept him then, so why not now? (Marc Normandin)

What were your feelings at the time of the Renteria trade to DET? Since it was a foregone conclusion that ATL wanted to move him should Dombrowski have had to invest two of his top 5 prospects? Thank you.(lemppi from Ankeny, IA)

At the time, I liked it for both parties, but I also didn't think that Jair Jurrjens was going to be much better than a 6th starter. There's still probably a rule that the other 29 clubs shouldn't trade with Atlanta. (Nate Silver)

Pick up Danks and Jurrjens. Extended exposure to Lohse can severely damage your judgment, even if I was forced to grab him during the playoffs last year. That's a dark time in my life I'd rather not discuss. (Marc Normandin)

Jair Jurrjens has been a savior for Bobby Cox this year. Do you think Jurrjens is playing over his head right now?(Jenny from Macon)

He is over his head. Jurrjens is, right now, a #4 with a #2 upside. He certainly helps the Braves, who had real problems at the back end last season. If Smoltz goes to the bullpen, Jurrjens becomes their second-best starter. (Joe Sheehan)

Up until his last ST start, Jair Jurrjens was lights out. Although his K rate isn't great, it seems he has a knack for getting guys out. Could he be a valuable fantasy contributor this year or better for keeper leagues?(Thomas from Myerstown, Penn)

Braves like him but right now he is 5th starter as best. I like him as a potential keeper. (Mike Siano)

BP Roundtables

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PITCHf/x Pitcher Profile

Although he has not thrown an MLB pitch in 2014, Jair Jurrjens threw 12,072 pitches that were tracked by the PITCHf/x system between 2007 and 2015, including pitches thrown in the MLB Regular Season, the MLB Postseason and Spring Training. In 2015, he relied primarily on his Fourseam Fastball (91mph) and Change (83mph), also mixing in a Slider (78mph) and Sinker (90mph).